IMS business report reveals music industry grew by 18% in 2021

The electronic music industry's value has actually grown between 2020 and 2021 - with the value now being estimated as $6 billion.

According to a newly released business report presented yesterday at the International Music Summit (IMS) in Ibiza, there has been an increase in the value of the music industry and in market share across the UK and Germany.

Streaming figures accelerated in 2021, up 24% year-on-year compared with 19% growth in 2019-20 and 22% in 2018-19.

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In 2021, physical sales increased for the first time in 20 years, with vinyl sales up 51% and CD sales up 9%.

Germany surpassed the UK’s market share in 2021 for the first time. Wolfgang Boss, producer and president of A&R, Sony Music says: "... [In Germany,] growth is driven by commercial radio accepting commercial dance-pop as one of, if not THE dominant genre.

"Artists like Robin Schulz, Alle Farben, Felix Jähn, Purple Disco Machine, Topic, etc have airplay hits and are heavily supported on every release - even with weaker singles. Airplay comes first and is the driver of success ..."

This success was mirrored by the share in streaming platforms too, as Electronic Music’s share of Spotify’s Top 200 grew in 16 of 28 territories studied by IMS.

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The IMS report also shows evidence of the growth of electronic music festivals and clubs, previously valued at $2.5 billion in 2020, up by 166% in 2021 - a whopping $1.6 billion.

However, while demand for live music can be seen going up, the growth of live streams has steadily begun to plateau.

Pioneer DJ's Mark Grotefeld says that young people, ages between 13 and 16, who are buying kit don't necessarily see themselves as DJs, and they see buying kit as 'mixtape machines' for home entertainment.

A major point that the report picked up on was the lack of adequate Black representation within the industry and on lineups. It is a "grim statistic that needs urgent attention", according to IMS' David Boyle.

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Aneesa Ahmed is Mixmag's Digital Intern, follow her on Twitter